


Shadow of the Past

by Devondeal



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Canon Compliant, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-26 09:53:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30104118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Devondeal/pseuds/Devondeal
Summary: What if Plo Koon hadn't made it in time to to save baby Ahsoka from the slaver? What if the slaver was an agent of Palpatine to collect force sensitive children for the nefarious purpose of being raised in the first inquisitor cult to prepare for the future imperial regime?Barriss and Ahsoka are together post Order 66 working for the Rebellion until something rips through the fabric of time preventing Plo Koon from ever bringing Ahsoka to the Jedi. After this happens, Barriss finds herself in a universe very similar to her own post Order 66 but she has lost Ahsoka.No one else has any memory of who Ahsoka is, so Barriss goes searching for her in this strange alternate universe where apparently Maul is the leader of the Mandalorians and various other crime organizations called the Syndicate and is fighting the Empire for control of the galaxy. This is known as the Sith war. In this journey, Barriss discovers that Ahsoka was raised as an inquisitor and must find a way to fix this broken galaxy to its slightly less broken state (as less broken as it can get in a post Order 66 galaxy).
Relationships: Barriss Offee/Ahsoka Tano
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7





	1. Her Yellow Eyes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JediMasterBailey](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JediMasterBailey/gifts).



> A massive shoutout to @JediMasterBailey who encouraged me to get an AO3 account in the first place as well as helped to inspire this fic through our amazing conversations on Tumblr. I would never have come up with this idea if it weren't for her. She continues to influence key details and elements throughout my creation of this fic that make it as good as it is. 
> 
> To be clear about the status quo, in my version of the canon compliant reality, Barriss Offee has long been forgiven for her mistakes in The Wrong Jedi arc. Her redemption arc happened years earlier, and she and Ahsoka are currently in a romantic relationship. The timeline is somewhere along season 2 of Star Wars Rebels, but before Twilight of the Apprentice. The alternate universe I will be exploring is only temporary, but it will be the primary plot of this story. Barriss is the only one who remembers the canon compliant-verse and while that reality was miserable already due to the Empire, this AU is so much worse with the Sith war and she will fight tooth and nail to change things back. No matter the cost.

Barriss finds herself in a universe almost identical to her own post Order 66 but she has lost Ahsoka. Everyone she talks to says they don't know who Ahsoka is and it's driving her mad. And for some reason, they have no memory of Barriss's bombing on the temple. Instead, she is an early Rebellion member. And to top it all off, the Rebellion isn't fighting. How can they when there's already a war?

Bail Organa, surprised at her lapse of memory informed Barriss that Maul was the leader of Mandalore and was fighting the Empire aided with his various crime armies altogether known as the Syndicate. In a Sith war, there's little the Rebellion can do except help the survivors and distribute food and supplies to those on both sides suffering shortages from the war. Her role was primarily to assist on recovery missions to rescue refugees and heal those who had suffered in the crossfire.  
Nothing makes sense. All Barriss wants to do is find Ahsoka and get out of this nightmare. She tells Bail Organa very little - only that she is going on a personal mission. Organa joked about how he missed the mysterious ways of the Jedi and their 'spiritual escapades' - if only it were that simple.  
She searches for Ahsoka with little luck since her name isn't registered anywhere but little does she know, Ahsoka is tracking her too, but for a very different reason...  
Barriss lands on a moon when her latest lead dries up. She had found a Tano yesterday, but it wasn't Ahsoka. Frustrated she hoped meditation would center herself.

In the darkness of the cave Barriss is meditating in, she senses a strange presence. Both familiar and a stranger. She opens her eyes and sees the silhouette of Ahsoka.

Barriss: "Ahsoka?"

Ahsoka: "Who's Ahsoka? Another Jedi friend? Or perhaps just a rebel collaborator?"

It sounded exactly like her but with a slow sinister drawl Ahsoka has never used. Barriss had a bad feeling about this but she stayed hopeful.

Barriss: "Don't you recognize me?"

Ahsoka: "Recognize you? I've studied you. Your tactics, your lightsaber style, your force healing... your Rebel activities. You've been my little project for a number years, but I've never been able to find you... until now."

A double bladed red lightsaber ignites lighting Ahsoka's face confirming that it is indeed her. But her eyes were yellow.

Barriss: "No. No, this isn't real. It can't be."

Ahsoka was disappointed that her target appeared to have lost her mind. Barriss Offee, the famed rebel Jedi knight was to be her kill and she wanted it to be a noble kill. Ah well, guess she could always omit that part out of the report.

Ahsoka: "Better defend yourself Jedi. I don't like killing helpless bugs. Takes away the sport."

Barriss: "Ahsoka, I don't understand what's happening but I promised myself I would never lift my blade against you again."

Ahsoka: "Again? You really have lost your mind! I must say I'm disappointed. Here I was, expecting the duel of a lifetime."

Barriss: "Ahsoka..."

Ahsoka: "That is NOT my name! I am 9th sister. If you won't defend yourself, prepare to die Barriss Offee."

Ahsoka's attack is sloppy. Barriss easily evades her. The Ahsoka she knows would never have been so disorganized with an attack so straightforward. Ahsoka became so frustrated with the evasions that she turned on the spinning mode of the uniform inquisitor saber. Barriss would have rolled her eyes if her heart wasn't breaking.  
How could this happen? Ahsoka had just proposed to her the night before. The next morning Ahsoka wasn't there. And now that she finds her, it's this... person she doesn't even know. Badly trained too. Almost like someone was afraid of her potential.

Barriss disarms Ahsoka with a simple force push destroying the saber against the cave wall.

Barriss: "It seems inquisitors are the same no matter what insane reality I'm in."

Despite bad inquisitor training, Ahsoka's instincts were still sharp and Barriss didn't predict that Ahsoka would use the force to grab her own blue saber. Barriss jumped backward in time but got a lightly grazed on her side which would leave lightsaber burns on her skin. For a moment, Ahsoka, fierce with the heat of battle and a blue lightsaber looked so much more like herself... if she weren't trying to kill her that is.

She had an idea though it pained her.

Barriss: "Ahsoka, please. You know me, deep down, I have to believe that. And I know you. Whatever this nightmare is, we can fix this together."

Ahsoka: "Stop calling me that!!!"

Again Barriss evades her attack but this time, she has a syringe in her hand with enough sedative to knock her out for a good few hours. She only hoped this version of Ahsoka didn't have her fear of needles.

She yelped, then slashed the lightsaber carelessly and dropped like a rock.

Barriss began to shake. She knocked out Ahsoka. Even if she avoided using her lightsaber, it still felt horrible. She fell to knees and let whatever emotions needed to be let out. She couldn't let this Ahsoka see her like this. If she's going to get through to her, it would have to be through logic. In this place, Ahsoka had no idea who she was so emotions wouldn't work. She carried Ahsoka to her ship trying to ignore how thin she was. She needed to get them back to their own reality somehow.


	2. Getting to Know You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barriss holds back her emotions in favor of a more logical approach to dealing with Inquisitor Ahsoka. Keeping her captive, she flies her ship to Dantooine for answers while learning more about what this version of Ahsoka is like.

On an unfamiliar ship, Ahsoka is bound by her own inquisitor issue cuffs. She looks up to see her prey piloting.

Still delirious from the sedative, she mumbled,

Ahsoka: "Jedi filth."

Barriss: "I see you're awake."

Ahsoka: "You're better off killing me. I'll never tell your precious Rebellion anything."

Barriss: "You really seem to have a death wish, don't you? Going after a Jedi knight instead of your usual padawan hunts. You weren't trained to fight someone like me."

Ahsoka: "Lord Vader doesn't have time for scum like you. And like I said, I don't like killing bugs."

Barriss: "Or... maybe you don't like murdering the young and innocent."

Ahsoka: (chuckles) "Oh I don't care about that. It's just no fun without a challenge."

Barriss: "I wouldn't be too sure about that."

Ahsoka: "What? You don't even know me!"

Barriss: "Who are you trying to impress? Your Grand Inquisitor? Or perhaps Darth Vader? The Emperor even? Don't you see you were trained to die!? To wipe out the easy ones until you yourself get killed by a superior opponent leaving Vader to swoop in and take care of the real threats."

Ahsoka: "I'm stronger than you think."

A moment of silence fill the room. Barriss had to remind herself that this Ahsoka has no idea that in a slightly better place, they loved each other.

Barriss: "I believe you."

They are quiet for a half hour until...

Ahsoka: "You're not taking me to the Rebellion are you?"

Barriss: "No. I'm not."

Ahsoka: "I'll kill you the second you let me go... but I feel like those aren't your plans either."

Barriss: "Again, you are correct."

Ahsoka: (starting to get worried) "Where are you taking me?"

Barriss: "Somewhere I hope can give us answers."

They land on Dantooine. Barriss hopes the Jedi temple could provide insight into this unusual predicament. She made Ahsoka walk ahead of her, alert for any escape attempts. She hoped she would be able to defend herself without lifting a weapon to her beloved.  
They found the temple and of course Ahsoka said the second she was free she'd report it and have it razed to the ground. Barriss ignored that.

The door closed behind them and they were trapped inside. Taking the traditional kneeling poses, Barriss instinctively told her to meditate. Ahsoka gave her a confused look.

Barriss: "Don't inquisitors at least learn basic meditation?"

Ahsoka shook her head. No wonder inquisitors were so disconnected from the force. Perhaps conversation would be a better way to fill the silence until the temple was ready to show them its secrets.

Barriss: "Why me? Of all the surviving knights you could have chosen to study and track down, why me?"

Ahsoka: "Don't give yourself too much credit, Jedi, it was random."

Barriss: "Somehow I doubt that. It's too much of a coincidence."

Ahsoka: "What do you mean?"

Barriss: "Nothing. Listen, we could be here for hours. I'd like to at least know what earned me the "honor"."

Ahsoka: "… Because you're nothing like me. I read about the 2nd battle of Geonosis. You memorized an entire underground maze. Your discipline is unparalleled. And you chose to leave the Jedi Order just to make a statement against the war so that does make you quite unique."

Barriss looked away, holding back tears. So that's what the Barriss of this reality was like. One of the many right choices she could have made and it was the one her Ahsoka had done. She gathered herself.

Barriss: "We're a lot more alike than you possibly imagine."

Ahsoka: (chucking) "Oh so you've killed Jedi too huh?"

Barriss stayed silent. She wasn't sure she could give an answer that was truthful in her current position.

Her silence disturbed Ahsoka immensely. No where in her records had it stated anything about Barriss Offee killing fellow Jedi, yet the woman before her was giving off waves of regret just because of her sarcasm. Ahsoka wasn't sure why she felt disappointed but she did. The Barriss she studied had integrity and confidence. The Barriss before her was broken.

A few minutes in silence passed until Barriss raised her eyebrow.

Barriss: "It doesn't sound random."

Ahsoka: "Huh?"

Barriss: "Your reason for choosing me. It's really quite specific actually."

To Ahsoka's surprise, she blushed. Which made her angry because she didn't know why.

Ahsoka: "So? What are you implying?"

Barriss: "Just that I think there's more to you than you're aware of."

Ahsoka was just about to yell when a bright doorway appeared in front of them. Barriss saw it too. Barriss stood up and motioned for her to go on. She didn't know why but it gave the bad kind of chills.

Ahsoka: "I am not going in there."

Barriss: "You don't have to afraid. I can see it too so it's for both of us. We'll go in together. The front door is not going to open up again until we get what we came for."

Ahsoka: "You mean what you came for."

Regardless she went through the doorway. Maybe there were Jedi secrets in there that she could bring to Lord Vader when she escaped.


	3. Jedi Temple Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Jedi Temple provides hints to how this AU came about through vague visions that Barriss will have to decode. She isn't able to figure out everything quite yet, but the reason why Ahsoka is an inquisitor in this reality is revealed.

The light shone brightly until it dimmed down to a hazy dreamlike tone. They were in a valley surrounded by colorful forest and the sun was warm. There was a village of Togruta nearby. Ahsoka and Barriss realized that the temple was showing them the planet Shili. That ugly chill Ahsoka felt before entering the doorway came back. This place was very familiar and she didn't like it one bit. Barriss noticed her discomfort.

Barriss: "You know this place?"

Ahsoka: "I think so."

They suddenly appeared inside one of the buildings where there were several Togruta and a Zygerrian woman standing across from each other. There was also a Togruta toddler hiding behind a Togruta woman. No one seemed to notice Barriss and Ahsoka's presence. 

Togruta woman: "I'm sorry, she's not usually this shy."

Zygerrian woman: "I am a foreigner. This is to be expected. She is only a child after all."

Elder Togruta: "We are honored by your presence of course."

But as he said this, he gave the toddler and her mother a stern look.

The Togruta woman kneels down to the toddlers level: "Come on, Ahsoka. Say hello to the Jedi."

The toddler clung harder to her mother keeping her head down in embarrassment and fear. She somehow knew this was no Jedi even though she didn't even understand what a Jedi was. When her mother attempted to pick her up to allow the "Jedi" to properly examine her, she struggled and ran out of the room. The elders groaned in disappointment and apologized profusely.

Ahsoka's jaw dropped. She had no idea how to process what she was looking at, but she didn't just recognize it, she felt it in her bones. Barriss immediately knew what they were looking at. Ahsoka had told her this story before.

Suddenly they were inside a much home-ier location where toddler Ahsoka was crying quietly and her mother gently held her.

Mother: "Sweetie, what's wrong?"

Toddler Ahsoka: "Don't like her."

Mother: "Why not?"

Little Ahsoka didn't know how to answer. 

Toddler Ahsoka: "She's bad."

Mother: "She's been nothing but kind to us. What makes you think she's bad? Did she do something bad?" 

The mother was genuinely concerned if something unseen had happened.

Toddler Ahsoka shook her head. The mother sighed in relief.

Mother: "Well then, nothing’s wrong."

Toddler Ahsoka looked down and made a sad and frustrated expression that Barriss recognized too well. 

The image changed again to the outdoors where the Zygerrian's ship was right outside the village. The toddler Ahsoka was screaming and crying in her mother's arms. 

The elders were shaking their heads clearly frustrated at the child's reluctance. 

Elder Togruta: "Forgive us, Master Jedi. We don't understand why she's behaving this way." 

Zygerrian: "She is strong with the force. Through training, she will master her emotions. I see much potential in her. You should be proud."

Ahsoka's mother's eyes began to well up and she tried to calm her child

Mother: "Shh... shh.. it's ok. You're going to become a Jedi. Like her. You'll be with your own kind, with people who understand what you are, who can help you with your special powers. The other children won't exclude you or make fun of you. You'll be one of them."

The child quieted for a moment.

Ahsoka's mother: "I love you and I will never forget you."

She kissed her forehead and the child began to wail again as she was handed to the Zygerrian. Her mother was crying silently trying to be brave for her daughter. As the Zygerrian walked into her ship the child was looking over her shoulder, screaming for someone, her mother or anyone, to take her back. Her arms reached out for someone, anyone to rescue her. But no one came and the door of the ship closed silencing the child's screams and suddenly the planet was gone and Barriss and Ahsoka were surrounded by darkness.

Barriss had been expecting Plo Koon to show up at any moment, but he never did. Now she partially understood why this reality - well at least Ahsoka, was the way she was. Palpatine must have been planning the inquisitor program years in advance. They probably were hidden, much like the clone army was before Kenobi discovered them conveniently in time for the separatist conflict. 

She remembered the report of the force sensitive younglings Ahsoka and Anakin had rescued from Darth Sidious in the Clone Wars.

To think that without Plo Koon, Ahsoka would have fell victim... has fallen victim to his grotesque plans... it was just too much. Tears streamed down Barriss's face. Ahsoka wasn't crying but her face was frozen with terror and she was shivering. Barriss pulled herself together and tried to reach out to comfort Ahsoka but she jolted away from her touch. 

Barriss realized that while this was just a visual memory for her, for Ahsoka this was so much more. She must have relived everything, from smells to physical touches, to the exact pace of her own past breaths. The dread she must have felt when her loved ones didn't believe her and gave her away to someone she knew they shouldn't trust... The helplessness. 

Barriss: "Ahso- … I mean... I'm so sorry. I didn't realize the temple would..."

Ahsoka looked at her with an expression that reminded Barriss too much of how she looked at the trial when she confessed to bombing the temple. But her yellow eyes glinted with anger. Suddenly Ahsoka's expression shifted to confusion and she looked down. Barriss followed her gaze down to see that her shackles had disappeared. 

Immediately Ahsoka force pushed Barriss away and ran further into the darkness.

Barriss: "No! Wait!"

But her surroundings began to change before she could chase after Ahsoka. She recognized this place to be their home before this insanity happened. And for some reason she was lying down in bed with the morning sun shining in.

Much like how she had woken up to find Ahsoka gone and that reality had shifted to somehow becoming impossibly worse. She got out of bed and saw she was in pajamas instead of her previous attire. Had this all been some awful dream? She didn't know what to think anymore.   
She went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. 

Suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and Ahsoka's voice spoke softly in her right ear, "Gotcha" causing Barriss to jolt so hard, she dropped the glass and it shattered on the floor.

Ahsoka: "Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to startle you."

Barriss turned around and saw Ahsoka and immediately noticed her eyes were blue. She also noticed Ahsoka was in pajamas too. She couldn't help staring.

Ahsoka: "Hey. You ok?"

Barriss: "I... um...'

She looked down at the shattered glass.

Ahsoka: "Don't worry about that. I'll clean it up. My fault anyway. I promise I'll never sneak up on you again, ok?"

Ahsoka cupped her cheek. Her hand was warm.

Barriss: "Ok..."

Ahsoka kissed her forehead and Barriss went back to bed claiming she needed to lie down for a moment.   
Was this real? She thought to herself. The more she thought about it, the more those awful events were beginning to fade away like a dream does after one awakes.  
Ahsoka came back from cleaning up the glass. As usual, she jumped in bed rather than just sitting and lying down. 

Barriss: 'You know I don't like when you do that. It shakes the whole bed."

Ahsoka: "Can I help it if Alderaanian beds are so jumpable?"

Barriss laughs and cries at the same time. She missed this.

Barriss: (shakily laughing) "That's not a word."

Ahsoka: (concerned) "Barriss?" 

Barriss: "I think I had a bad dream. And it seemed so real..."

Ahsoka: "I know that feeling... Can I?"

Barriss: "Please."

Ahsoka cuddled up to Barriss, holding her as they faced each other, their noses almost touching.

Ahsoka: "We're gonna get through this, we always do." 

For a moment, it was quiet and Barriss felt peaceful. But then she remembered the sound of a child screaming. She opened her eyes and sat up suddenly alarming Ahsoka.

Ahsoka: "Another dream?"

Barriss: "This isn't real. I have to get back."

Ahsoka: "What? What do you mean?"

Barriss: "I'm still in the Jedi temple. It's testing me." 

Ahsoka: "Ok now I have no idea what you're talking about."

Barriss looked back at Ahsoka who was leaning on a pillow. She looked exactly how she was before the reality shift. Which means... She glanced at the bedside tables on each side and both had an engagement ring. The temple really thought of everything. 

Barriss: "I don't belong here. Not yet. I have to go and fix things."

Ahsoka's face fell.

Ahsoka: "Haven't you spent enough time fixing things? Why can't you let it go for once and be with me?"

Barriss: "You know I can't."

Ahsoka: (sighs) "That conscience of yours...."

Barriss gently cupped Ahsoka's face and neck with her hands

Barriss: "I love you, and I'm coming back. But I can't let the universe destroy itself."

The vision of Ahsoka started to cry softly. 

Ahsoka: "When this is real again, I'll be here."

Barriss began to wonder if there was some reality trapped in the illusion. They kissed each other, not a goodbye, but something for Barriss to hold onto during this ordeal. Barriss noticed that she was no longer in pajamas and back in her previous attire.

She stood and walked to the door of their house as Ahsoka watched her leave. Barriss took one look back, noticing the darkness start to consume her home. She locked eyes with Ahsoka, then turned and closed the door before she could see her home and her soon to be wife disappear. She was now back in the main temple room where that bright door had showed up in front of them in what felt like hours ago.

Barriss shut her eyes tightly, processing what just happened. The temple had tested her to make sure she was ready for the challenge ahead, then given her a gift. A memory to keep in her heart when things got too difficult. Ahsoka's voice but with that strange slow, sinister drawl caused her to open her eyes again.

Ahsoka: "You took long enough."

Barriss: "How long…?"

Ahsoka: "I tried getting that door open. I used my strength, the force, leverage, that thing won’t budge. I had no choice but to wait for you."

She said this with a snarl. 

Barriss: "About that vision…"

Ahsoka: "I don’t care about the vision, I just want to get out of this tomb! You’d be dead if I wasn’t afraid of being trapped in here alone." 

Barriss could have retorted with a comment about how that was unlikely given her inferior fighting style, but she didn’t want to provoke her. The Shili vision was affecting her, no matter how much she denied it. 

Barriss: "Did the temple show you anything else or try to test you at all?"

Ahsoka: "No, I’ve been sitting here alone waiting for you for ages." 

Barriss couldn’t tell if she was telling the truth or not until she noticed Ahsoka’s knuckles were bloody. Something did happen, but she felt it wasn’t the right time to ask. 

Barriss: "Strange, the door should have opened now that I'm back. Perhaps the temple wants us to use the force together to open it as another challenge."

Ahsoka: "You’re a Jedi and I use the dark side. How is that going to work?"

Barriss: "I guess we’ll learn by trying."

They used the force together, willing the door to open. A few seconds passed by and it wouldn’t budge. Suddenly the temple began to vibrate and the door opened with an ugly scratching sound, stone against stone. Once it was open, they finally walked outside the temple.  
Suddenly the temple began to sink into the ground with such a shocking ferocity, as if it had gotten sick from regurgitating its maligned force users. 

Barriss used this opportunity with Ahsoka distracted from the spectacle to cuff her again.

Ahsoka: "Hey!"

Barriss: "What? You had a lot of these in your ship and I figured that you would give me enough trouble."

Ahsoka: "So you kept an extra pair in your pocket?!"

Barriss: "Two pairs actually…"

Ahsoka stared at her incredulously.

Barriss: "Well it pays to be prepared."

Ahsoka: "Or you could just kill me and rid yourself of a problem."

Barriss: "Would you stop with the death talk, it’s really disconcerting!"

Ahsoka: "What’s “disconcerting” is how you Jedi won’t even kill your own exterminators! You’re all about the greater good until you have to do the dirty work!"

Barriss: "You sound as if this has happened to you before."

Ahsoka: "You don’t know me, so stop acting like you do. Just take me to your ship and do to me whatever you have planned… I’m getting tired of this." 

Barriss frowned. She definitely wasn’t telling her something. No matter; that would come later. Right now she had to find somewhere safe to stay and try to decipher what the temple was trying to tell her. Temple visions were known to not always be direct, so there was definitely something useful in the visions she had seen… including possibly whatever Ahsoka might have seen and wasn’t telling her.

She would somehow have to get her to reveal it while continuing to challenge her beliefs about the Empire. She hoped she could turn her, but this Ahsoka had been through horrors different from her own Ahsoka. That vision of her as a child without Plo Koon to save her was heartbreaking. She’d have to remember she wasn’t the same person, otherwise she would never be able to persuade Ahsoka of her potential for good. And it was imperative she did. She couldn’t do this alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To anyone wondering, yes, the baby Ahsoka flashback was painful to write, but it's one of my favorite scenes. I hope one day, Dave Filoni makes a comic or an animated short about how Plo Koon rescues Ahsoka from the slaver. 
> 
> Also, as far as Filoni has said, the slaver was only just that. But I have a theory that since Palpatine is known for kidnapping force sensitive children, it wouldn't be too far off that he succeeded and was hiding a secret Inquisitor cult to eventually unveil when the Empire rose. It makes sense because he did the same thing with Clone Army by preparing it at least 10 years prior to the Clone Wars and unveiling it when the war began.   
> Anyway, in my opinion, why would a regular slaver bother with force sensitive children since there is no way they could possibly train them to be of any use? It makes more sense to me that they would be working for another force sensitive who could train the children they kidnapped.


	4. A Trip Down Memory Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barriss attempts to question Ahsoka about her vision. She doesn't get exactly what she wants, but instead discovers something else that is different about this alternate reality and remembers events from her old universe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, thank you @JediMasterBailey for bouncing our ideas off each other. Particularly the Inquisitor Ahsoka and Barriss banter in this one because we love our disaster gay padawans.

After Barriss bandaged Ahsoka hands, (with a few confused looks from her as well), she put the ship on automatic, and made sure Ahsoka’s was secure so she could meditate on what she had seen in the temple. Or, at least she was about to when Ahsoka interrupted. At least some things didn’t change. 

Ahsoka: "So, what did you do with my ship back on that moon?"

Barriss: "If you mean what did I do to the tracking beacon on it, I destroyed it."

Ahsoka: "Big mistake. They’ll send more of us after you once it stops working."

Barriss: "Oh I don’t think they will. I leaked the fuel then put it on automatic pilot and made it fly itself into a mountain side. It will look like an accident. And the cockpit exploded on impact so there’s no chance they would know if someone was inside or not."

Ahsoka: "Ingenious as always, Offee. I wonder what you’ll come up with next."

Barriss noticed the way Ahsoka was looking at her which… well, in her universe that look would mean she wanted her now, but obviously this wasn’t the same Ahsoka. Although… her Ahsoka always did have a thing for her nerd/strategy talk. She remembered certain Rebellion meetings where Ahsoka could barely contain herself when Barriss did the talking and looked at her exactly the way she was now. 

Barriss: "You said you’ve been tracking me for years. How many?" 

Ahsoka: "Three. You were not easy to find. In fact, I’d been wondering why you went out of hiding. Not your smartest move, so of course I figured it was a trap." 

Barriss: "If you thought that, then why did you walk into it? Why not bring back up?"

Ahsoka: "I’m an inquisitor, what else was I supposed to do? Play spin the saber for fun? And if you think I’m letting someone else get the credit, then think again. You’re mine."

Barriss knew that’s not all how she meant it but she couldn’t help blushing. Also she had forgotten that inquisitors were competitive. Her “backup” likely would have killed her or gotten her out of the way then claimed the prize for themselves. It was the only way they could prove themselves worthy. As long as she’s being distracted from pondering the visions, she might as well use this opportunity to make her think.

Barriss: "You realize there’s no point in trying to rise through the ranks. The moment you start getting a little too ambitious, your Grand Inquisitor is going to see you as a threat, not an asset." 

Ahsoka: "Not if I kill him first."

Barriss: "Ah yes. That’s a very good point. Although, do you really want to be the one that directly answers to Darth Vader?" 

Ahsoka was quiet for a moment. Barriss knew Vader’s irritable and rather murderous reputation was infamous among Imperials of all branches. And even Ahsoka, for all her cocky impulsiveness, knew she could never defeat Vader. 

Ahsoka: "It doesn’t matter. I have a quota to meet. So your death still serves my purposes."

Barriss: "So… if rising through the ranks is pointless, and you’re still obligated to serve the Inquisitorius, which I assume, given your obvious malnutrition, only provides you with the bare essentials, does that not constitute slavery?"

Ahsoka turned a furious shade of red.

Ahsoka: "The more you talk, Jedi, the slower your death will be once I’m free."

Barriss: "Ok. But you were the one who started this conversation, so…"

Ahsoka stopped talking. After about 15 minutes, she fell asleep to the sound of the lulling engines. Barriss took the opportunity to meditate. It wouldn’t be her best meditation since a part of her had to stay alert in case Ahsoka was faking her dormant state.  
She began to contemplate the visions. Why had Plo Koon not arrived to stop the slaver? What stopped him? And was there possibly a connection to the Sith war between Palpatine and Maul? As far as she knew, nothing else was different aside from herself, Ahsoka, and the Sith war. Order 66 had still happened and only a handful of Jedi were alive and being hunted down by inquisitors. Kenobi, Skywalker, and Yoda were still missing. Padme Amidala was still dead. Her own master was likely dead as well, like in her own reality, since she hadn’t heard anything about her since she woke up in this nightmare. Barriss was just too exhausted by that grief to try to find any official document about it. 

As for her own vision, what Ahsoka, well the other other Ahsoka (this was starting to get confusing) said stuck with her. “When this is real again, I’ll be here.” Something did shift reality otherwise the temple wouldn’t have been so precise in its phrasing. Then Barriss realized something. Why did she, of all people, remember any of this? A sick feeling began to form deep in her gut. In her former reality, she had bombed the Coruscant temple and unintentionally framed Ahsoka for it. In this reality, that never happened. She had decided to walk away from the Jedi Order soon after being knighted. This was something she had fantasized about often. 

Then an upsetting thought occurred to her. What if… what if she was somehow responsible for all of this? She was the only one to remember anything which is quite suspicious. Yet, for all of her wishing that she had made better choices, since when were wishes spontaneously granted? And she would never want such a wish granted if it meant the state of the galaxy being impossibly worse than before and making Ahsoka’s life even more miserable than she had already done once. She felt like a sick joke had been played on her. She made the right choice by walking away, yet still managed to hurt Ahsoka as well as get an immeasurable amount of people killed as a result of the Sith war. She realized she was drowning in her guilt again. While it was entirely possible this whole debacle was her fault, she couldn’t allow her emotions to dominate her actions.

The force around her began to ripple. She could sense Ahsoka slowly approaching her. Which reminded her that she was still missing her piece of the puzzle. Perhaps this was a good time to question her about that. With her eyes still closed, Barriss instinctively force held Ahsoka’s arms back from striking her with her own cuffs. Keeping her focus, she opened her eyes and turned to face her. 

Barriss: "I’m glad you’re awake. We have something to discuss."

She released Ahsoka, who grunted with frustration and sat back down pouting. 

Barriss: "I know you saw something in the temple. I’d like to know what it was."

Ahsoka: "What makes you think that?"

Barriss: "Because your knuckles were bruised only after I returned from my vision."

Ahsoka: "Oh bravo, Jedi. Now I suppose you’ll use your little mind tricks on me if I don’t talk."

Barriss: "No… I could never do that. You’ve had enough choices taken away from you." 

Ahsoka: "Then you’ll never know… and if you think being nice to me will spare you, think again. Make no mistake, I will have you on your knees, Offee. Oh, but I won’t make it easy. I’m going to take my time with you and you’ll be begging me for mercy."

Barriss tried her hardest to suppress her laughter, but she just couldn’t. The fact that Inquisitor Ahsoka’s murder voice was the same as her Ahsoka’s seduction voice just made the interestingly phrased threat sound like certain fun memories.

Ahsoka: "Hey! It’s not funny!!"

Barriss: "I’m sorry, I…" (burst out laughing again).

Ahsoka: "Stop it!!!"

Barriss: "I can’t help it" (suppressing giggles)

Ahsoka: "You know, the Imperial files on you neglected to mention that you’re INSANE! Kriffing Jedi..."

Barriss instantly stopped laughing when she heard the off-putting malice in that last word. It just sounded wrong coming out of Ahsoka’s mouth. 

Barriss: "Why do you want to kill Jedi so badly? What could we have possibly done to deserve genocide?!"

Ahsoka: "The way of things is for the strong to rule. The Jedi were soft and complacent and the galaxy suffered for it. You yourself left for that reason."

Barriss: "That doesn’t mean we deserved to die."

Ahsoka: "Doesn’t it? They were weak! And yet, they had power. Because of them, there was disorder and chaos. Only the strong deserve to rule. The fact that most of you are dead proves that."

Barriss began to feel sick from hearing words like that come out of Ahsoka’s mouth. She had enough.

Barriss: "Inquisitors are trained to wield limited power. By that logic, I estimate once the Jedi survivors are wiped out, you’re next on your precious Emperor’s list." 

Ahsoka swallowed and was about to talk more to dispute but Barriss continued,

Barriss: "And what about you? Are you their strongest? You didn’t call for backup against me so I assume that means the other inquisitors at least match or are better than you. And that wouldn’t mean much considering you were no match for a Jedi Knight. If the Emperor had bigger plans for the inquisitors, you should have been a much better fighter considering you were raised by them… Don’t you see? They’ll kill you when you’re no longer useful!"

Ahsoka: "Well, at least I don’t allow my kind to edge into extinction by letting my attackers live for the sake of ‘holier than thou’ principles! Or is that just an Unduli teaching?"

Barriss furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at the mention of her master.

Barriss: "What do you mean?"

Ahsoka: "Well, I suppose it wouldn’t be remarkable enough these days for her to deem it a grand enough tale to tell of how she spared an inquisitor’s life. It’s quite ironic really. She let me live only for me to go on and hunt down her former padawan. If I manage to kill you, it would be rather poetic don’t you think?"

She chuckled in a very un-Ahsoka like evil way. Little did she know the gift she had just given her enemy. Barriss tried to prevent her eyes from welling up but to no avail. 

Barriss: "Is Luminara Unduli still alive?"

Ahsoka: "How should I know? That was three years ago."

Barriss got up and rushed to her ship’s comm console much to Ahsoka’s confusion. Questioning Ahsoka about her vision would have to wait. She had no idea how to contact Luminara so instead she contacted another Rebel who would patch her to Bail Organa. It was far too dangerous to call him directly. All sorts of emotions were seeping through her attempt at a calm demeanor. In her own reality, she never had the chance to say she was sorry for what she did, never got to tell her how much she loved her, never had the chance to say goodbye. Luminara was captured and the Grand Inquisitor sent out a message to lure Barriss into a trap. In the message, he revealed his identity to be one of the temple guards and offered, to Barriss’s disgust, to keep Luminara alive so long as she joined him - which he claimed should be an easy choice for her. 

He mistakenly believed Barriss’s attack on the temple to be a complete denouncement of the Jedi way. Part of that was caused by her own mistake of how she delivered her message - a regret she would carry forever. With no intention of turning, she agreed to the meeting place where he promised he would bring Luminara. The Puan did not honor his word, however, and arrived without her. Perhaps because the presence of her master would make his attempt to turn Barriss less likely. Barriss panicked when she saw that her master was not with him, so she pretended that she agreed with him. It wasn’t hard at first, because he had already believed she was on his side from her speech. She remembered that day on the rocky moon. The sky was bluer than it had any right to be and the high winds chilled her on the cliff where she found the Grand Inquisitor waiting for her.

Barriss: "Where is my master?"

GI: "I thought it would be best if we could have a talk, unhindered by… distractions."

Barriss: "Alright. Say what you want to say, but then, you must show me Luminara Unduli."

GI: "We are of one mind, you and I. The Jedi believed that they could make harmony from chaos. I once believed that as well. You freed me from their lies and perhaps even saved my life, and for that, I will forever be grateful. There is a place for you in the Inquisitorius if you will take it. The Emperor was most impressed with your accurate vision of the future. Think of what we could accomplish through our common goals. I can do for you what you did for me - give you a new beginning, a chance to not only survive, but finally act on your beliefs. To practice what you preach, if you will."

Barriss, of course, was disgusted at the idea, but she knew that if she said no, with a single communication on his wrist comm, her master could die on the spot wherever she was. She would have to convince him she was on his side and infiltrate the prison where she was being held - meaning she’d have to withhold the urge to vomit from the words she was about to utter.

Barriss: "For so long I wondered if my speech fell on deaf ears… until now. You have no idea what it means to me that someone, even only one Jedi, actually listened to me. With the rise of the Empire, I didn’t know where I stood, where I belonged. I’m not a Jedi anymore, yet I’m still hunted like one." 

GI: "That could end now if you wish."

Barriss: "I do." 

The Grand Inquisitor smiled in a creepy full toothed display.

Barriss: "I have only one condition." 

GI: "Name it."

Barriss: "My master, despite being a hypocrite like the rest of them, must live. She was like a mother to me and even though she is the enemy, I cannot bear the idea of her death." 

The Grand Inquisitor’s smile faded into an ugly grimace.

GI: "That is the one request I’m afraid I cannot grant. For Unduli will never stray from the Jedi path and no Jedi may survive."

Barriss: "But you promised you would bring her here alive! What is the point of the Sith path if you cannot keep that which your heart values?"

GI: "The Emperor has a great plan which requires sacrifice. Do you not think the screams of the Jedi in the Coruscant Temple haunt me? Every day I guarded that Temple and I knew each of their faces by the thousands. Men, women, and children whom I knew. And I was willing to watch them all die for the cause. I even participated in the massacre and killed many because I was so committed, it didn’t matter how I felt about them."

Barriss tried to keep her emotions in check, but this facade was becoming increasingly more difficult to keep up.

GI: "And now you ask for mercy on one Jedi. What happened to the girl who faced a tribunal of Jedi and claimed that they must all be held accountable without exception? What happened to your willingness to sacrifice sheep for a greater cause?"

In that moment, Barriss knew it was over. So, without hesitation she grabbed her blaster and shot at his wrist comm, but the Grand Inquisitor was fast and suspended the bolt a full inch away from his arm and sent it back at Barriss who managed to evade it with only a tear in her cape. The GI scowled at her with a look of pure hatred.

GI: "Barriss Offee. You disappoint me. I thought we shared a vision."

Barriss: "The only thing we share are the nightmares from what we've done. What I said in that trial was only a partial truth obstructed by my own misinterpretations and hateful actions. If I could take it back, I would in a heartbeat!"

Her voice cracked on the last word. 

GI: "So be it… Jedi."

Barriss sensed what he was about to do, but she had no lightsaber to use against him so it was no use trying to charge him. ‘No, no, No!’ she thought to herself and attempted to force hurl rocks at him, causing him to ignite his saber and destroy them. He tried to hit her with an overhead strike but she jumped out of the way, acrobatically avoiding him while distracting him from giving the killing order, using the environment to her advantage. When he was distracted enough, she took her reserve explosives and threw them at him, but he noticed and allowed the rocks to hit him hard on his shoulder and leg in favor of force hurling the explosives right back at her. She tried to jump out of the way of the explosions, but the force pushed her hard against a sharp rocky wall. Her side was bruised and bloodied from where a slab of stone had stabbed her. Weakly, she crawled up and saw the Grand Inquisitor, limping toward her with one injured leg. He stared right at her as he clicked the comm and said, “Terminate the prisoner, Luminara Unduli.”

Barriss: “NO!!!” 

She screamed as she felt the certainty of Luminara’s life presence disappear, while the Puan laughed and ignited his red lightsaber to finish the job. Barriss thought she was done for until she saw that near her was a crevice in the ground with a narrow, but deep fall. Just as he struck, she rolled over and fell in. It was a long fall and she used the force to soften it as much as she could and landed in the rapids. The fast flowing water, while unpleasant, was an advantage as it would bring her in the direction of where she had hidden her ship. 

It was one of her worst memories. She had tried so hard, but it wasn’t enough. She kept thinking about what she could have done differently. It was Ahsoka who helped to decrease the cycle of helpless scenario replaying - even when she was still angry with her, she understood Barriss’s grief over her master.  
Years later, when all was forgiven and they had made a life, well the closest thing to a life during the Empire, she heard rumors that Luminara was still alive via a similar transmission with the same footage the Grand Inquisitor had once sent her. She tried her best to dispel that rumor, but to no avail since widespread communications were impossible. After another few years, Ahsoka had gently informed her that a Rebel cell confirmed what had happened to Luminara’s body and what it was being used for. Apparently, the Grand Inquisitor was inspired by his original plan to bait Barriss into returning. She had lost a piece of her heart the day she lost Luminara and felt more of herself fade after learning about this. And she never even got to say goodbye…

Ahsoka's voice snapped her out of her memories.

Ahsoka: "Hey, what’s going on? What are you doing?!"

Barriss ignored her and managed to get a fellow Rebel to patch her through to Organa. She made sure to tell him to code his signature meaning no holograms and use voice distortion due to Ahsoka’s presence. 

Organa: "Barriss? I didn’t think I’d hear from you so soon. What’s the problem?"

Barriss: "No problem."

She struggled to contain the anxiety in her voice.

Barriss: "I just wanted to ask if you know the status of my master, Luminara Unduli."

Organa: "Don’t you know?"

Barriss: "No…"

Organa: "Barriss, are you certain you’re alright? You said this spiritual trip would help recover your lost memories but have you lost more of them?"

Barriss: "I’m afraid so. Please just tell me about Luminara."

This was a lie, but she just couldn’t tell him the truth for fear he’d lose faith in her sanity.

Organa: "I haven’t seen her in some time. She’s been on a mission to help the surviving Lasat."

Barriss released a deep sigh of relief that she had been holding in for a long time. 

Barriss: "Send me her contact code."

Organa: "Done."

Barriss had a look at the code's distance.

Barriss: "That’s too far, my message won’t make it soon enough. Can you send her my coordinates and tell her I need her to meet me at my location as soon as she can make it? Tell her it’s an emergency."

Organa: "Will do. Do you think she can help with your problem?"

Barriss: "I know she can. Thank you so much."

Organa: "Anytime. May the Force be with you."

With that, the transmission ended. Barriss relaxed in the pilot’s seat. “She’s alive” she whispered to herself. It was so surreal that she wasn’t sure she was ready to fully believe it until she actually saw Luminara face to face. She’d save her tears of long lost love for then. 

Ahsoka, meanwhile, did not like what she had just witnessed at all. She already had little chance of defeating Barriss on her own; with Unduli joining her, there would be no chance at all. She cursed her own big mouth. “How could I be so stupid?!” she thought to herself. She really didn’t want to call for backup because the other inquisitors were sure to take the credit for her prize, but there wasn’t much choice anymore. While Barriss was distracted, Ahsoka clicked a hidden button on her boot. In overhearing the conversation, she learned that Unduli was further away from this sector. There was always an inquisitor hunting so it was likely that her reinforcements would arrive before the Jedi master. All she had to do was keep quiet and wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, Filoni, why have Luminara Unduli captured and then killed instead of just being immediately killed? And how did you not expect me to connect how in that one interview, you said that the Grand Inquisitor was inspired by Barriss's speech to the fact that Luminara was captured? ALSO, that one interview where you said you CONSIDERED putting Barriss in Star Wars Rebels (where Luminara of all Jedi's fates was revealed) but couldn't find the space for her story. These are straight up patterns and I am that meme of the crazy hair dude by a theory board.


End file.
